Response to the Second 24 Hour Disney Day

Two weeks ago Disney embarked on their second all nighter, the "Monstrous Summer All Nighter" on May 24th. This was in response to last years "One More Disney Day" On February 29th, leap day. The idea seemed to be good, and it appears as though Disney learned from last years issues that saw many un-Disney like things occur. To start, consider the timing: the May 24th date coincided perfectly with the Memorial Day vacation crowds. It appeared that Disney saw this as a way to take guests away from their competition by staying open overnight. Whether it worked or not remains to be seen, and though we will never know, it must be assumed that it certainly put a dent into the other parks attendance for two days.

Disney made a few changes this year, on both coasts that made the experience better for guests: In Disneyland, parts of California Adventure remained open as did all of Disneyland, and on both coasts the parks were closed to employees, unless they purchased a ticket on their own. This made a huge difference, as it appeared and was claimed by many that last years extravaganza was mired by what seemed like college frat parties. The lack of employees and college program employees no doubt had an effect on the crowds. Sadly to say, their absence made the experience much more child friendly, with less illegal activity and lewd images being presented.

The point of the new 24 hour day appeared to mark the beginning of the summer, and to promote the opening of Monster's University. Though not really a promotion, the name of the event was promotion enough. The second point was to take money out of the pockets of Universal, and Sea World respectively. Though Sea World is not huge competition, it was said that for those two nights both franchises had lower than expectation numbers, and that was a result of the Disney raid. The long day on the 24th followed by people needing the 25th to recuperate.

All in all the 24 hour Disney day proved successful, even if its crowd was not as big as last year (the lack of cast member guests kept that number down). The question is how often this might reoccur, on a yearly basis or less often? By doing it a second time, with the mistakes made being rectified suggests that they may make this a yearly occurrence. Stay tuned for rumors about next year.

Ranting and Raving: Thoughts on Limited Time Magic

Disney unveiled the concept of "Limited Time Magic" for the new year, and in theory the concept has sounded like a positive idea to promote special pluses to guests. The idea is to make each week or each vacation a little different than the last one. As it seems, the goal was to promote tourists to travel to Walt  Disney World and Disneyland during times that they would normally not travel. The belief would be that special times of year that were less "busy" would be balanced out by these limited time pluses. What are the thoughts now that it has been rolled out for about four months now? What about the program for the future? Let's look into it shall we.

Here are just some of the Limited Time Magic at Walt Disney World so far:

April 15–21, 2013

         Fairies week at the Magic Kingdom.

April 1–30, 2013

          April's addition to Disney's Year of the Ear is a Strawberry Ear Hat, 

March 25–31, 2013

          Easter Bunny at the United Kingdom Pavilion at Epcot

March 18–24, 2013

          Easter Egg Hunt in Epcot.

March 1–March 9, 2013

          Follow the yellow brick road to WonderGround Gallery at Downtown Disney

March 3–May 12, 2013

          Spring Trolley Show on Main Street, U.S.A. 

Feb. 18–24, 2013

          Presidents Day Celebration at the America Gardens Theatre in Epcot.

Feb. 11–17, 2013

          True Love Week

Feb. 1–9, 2013

          Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland for Super Sunday menu items.

Feb. 1–4, 2013

           Super Bowl spirit with a super pre-parade including MVP Joe Flacco. 

Jan. 21–27, 2013

           Long Lost Friends Week. 

Jan. 14–20, 2013

           Snow at Epcot

Jan. 7–13, 2013

          "Year of the Ear," promising new, limited-edition Ear Hats each month. 

Upon looking at the list up to this point it seems like things are certainly lacking. With the exception of the week of long lost friends, where old characters make appearances for the first time in years, and True Love week, it appears as though the magic is not necessarily all that magical. To give Disney credit, it seems like an impossibility to make every week ridiculously special, but as the list suggests it seems as though they are content with having a lackluster experience in certain weeks. It also seems curious that they have wrapped some of the yearly traditions into this, like the Super Bowl MVP parade, which is something that has been done since 1987 with Phil Simms. The problem seems to be simple. The Walt Disney Company seemed to be in a situation, with no real celebration in the parks for 2013. This has led to a combination of things from the past and newer, smaller, programs put together to entice travel. Even though many believe that the every year celebration seems to be unnecessary and overbearing, it has become a staple of the company really since the resorts 25th anniversary. 

Here is the bottom line: It is not a necessary thing for Disney to do, and thus it is not something that should make or break your travel to the resort, but if you get lucky to visit during one of the major week long celebrations consider yourself privileged, as it is not often that the magic will blow you away. 

Cancelled Parade in DHS... What Can This All Mean?

As was reported a few years back in the infancy of the Gazette, it appears as though the Pixar Countdown to Fun Parade at Disney's Hollywood Studios has been officially cancelled and boxed up. As of early April. the parade that follows the same general route that all DHS parades have followed will be ending its run. THough it lasted much longer than many anticipated (though they did make subtle improvements through the past year) the major curios act is the lack of a replacement. There is no new parade going into the park at all. Which would leave DHS and Epcot as the parks lacking a parade.

Now we know the reason Epcot has no parade, as the layout makes it difficult, and the Tapestry of Nations had a very limited year and a half run, but it is concerning to many as to why no new parade has been announced. This is extremely un-Disneylike. Consider every parade in Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, as well as Disneyland, Paris and the like have always announced a parade leaving with a parade coming. Keeping in mind that this parade will leave in approximately 2 weeks and there is no replacement makes many wonder. There is a long standing rumor (that this site has reported on in the past) that major renovations coming to the park, with a new facade for The Great Movie Ride (Carthay Circle Theater) A Star Wars area, and maybe some type of land or expansion to Pixar Place in the Backlot Tour area. This seems to be a logical step as major renovation would require the discontinuation of any parades within the park. We are not sure, but the News is there and the rumors persist. Lets just keep our eyes and ears open and see what comes out of The Walt Disney Company in the coming weeks and months.

New Downtown Disney Plan

Once again it appears as though there is a design on the docket for Downtown Disney. After the cancellation of Hyperion Wharf, for reasons really unknown, Disney has gone back to the drawing board. This drawing board represents what sounds like another Disney response to fan feedback, as it appeared that fans had trouble seeing the vision of the aforementioned Hyperion Wharf. The new idea is dubbed "Disney Springs" and seems to be rooted in the concept of the Disney Village from the early days of Downtown Disney.


"Disney Springs" will be divided into six distinct districts, or neighborhoods: The Gateway, The Town Center, The Springs, The Landing, The West Side and The Village Marketplace. Each land appears to have its own function, and will have a major part of the changes in Downtown Disney.

The Gateway- Will be the actual entrance of Disney Springs and will feature a 5-story parking garage. This will help deal with the parking issues that have plagued DTD since its inception.

The Town Center- Will include new retail shops, and be a busy and upbeat motif.

The Springs- This will feature the old Pleasure Island area, complete with running streams and a waterway walk to the Landing.

The Landing- This area will encompass dining and nightlife options, as well as being close to Paradiso 37. One of the rumored dining locations may be Morimoto's, the Iron Chef's restaurant.

The West Side and Village Marketplace will remain mostly unchanged as they are the holdovers from the DTD of today. Apparently the only real change will be the departure of Planet Hollywood, being replaced by the Observatory.

As we can see, there is another plan for the revitalization of Downtown Disney. This seems to be more in tune with what guests have been wanting to see, and thus will be a major part of the future of the Walt Disney World Resort.

Attraction Review: The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow

Having opened on December 6, The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow found itself in a place that many Disney fans found to be Disney's version of purgatory. Its footprint placed it in the former home of Journey to Narnia. Anyone who spends time in Central Florida will likely agree that besides Sounds Dangerous, this attraction had been the longest running without any real relevance. Consider this bit: Journey to Narnia closed on September 10, 2011. The attraction opened late June 2008 as a promotion of Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian opening that summer. The important piece of note: In December 2008 Disney dropped out as co-producers of the Narnia series, thus cutting ties with the franchise. This rendered the attraction irrelevant. For almost three years this attraction sat in purgatory, taking up space and costs with no hint of being important.

Fast Forward to late October 2012 when the announcement was made that the former plot would be used as an interactive experience based on Captain Jack and the Pirates of the Caribbean. This announcement proved to be important because it created an area, near Toy Story Mania, that would continue to be relevant long after the film series ends. Keeping in mind the fact that the films were based on an attraction Disney created, It would feature Johnny Depp, the star of the film series, and Disney's resident ace in the hole. Depp's popularity alone make all of his ventures popular. (See the upcoming Lone Ranger film)

Having had the opportunity to see the attraction during guest previews, (that Disney employees did not want to admit was happening) it is clear to see that the attraction is leaps and bounds ahead of its predecessor, as well as a entertaining experience all its own. The attraction features projection mapping,  dark ride elements as well as interactivity. Though it shares the same walkthrough element that Narnia presented, its presentation is stunning and impressive.

Upon entering, guests are reintroduced to the famous talking skull that many enthusiasts miss from the original attraction. Once inside the showroom, guests are in for a special effects extravaganza that includes Davy Jones, the Kraken and maybe the mermaids. Your job is to protect Jack Sparrows cave hideout and maybe even be given the opportunity to join Captain Jack's crew. Johnny Depp's appearance along the Black Pearl (via green screen technology) allows for different experiences each time. The special effects go from blowing ship sails, to explosions form cannon fire. The projection mapping prove exquisite as they successfully recreate a seaside attack.

The 8 minute attraction is one to be seen in person, and one that cannot be accurately explained. It is not often that an attraction be given such high marks, especially a walkthrough, but as an overall experience it does rank highly for what it is. Its predecessor cannot even begin to compare. Next time you are in Hollywood Studios do not pass up this attraction, or chalk it up as the same old walkthrough. Join Captain Jack's crew. It truly is impressive.